'Take your time," she told him with a little wave of her hand. "If you would like, you can give me your answer this evening."

'This evening?"

"Yes, if I do have to stay in this room alone, I would appreciate some company for my evening meal."

Again Kirk felt as if things were turning in a direction he had not antic.i.p.ated. "I suppose it's the least I can do."

Commander Teral was smiling as Kirk left. He wasn't sure what he was going to do about the Romulan ale. It would be convenient to scrub the charges to make up for detaining herif she wasn't the smuggler they were looking for. But that was a fairly large if.

Chapter Seven.

Spock found it fascinating to watch the reactions of the crew as, hour by hour, day by day, they endeavored to get the Enterprise back in working order.

Because stellar distances were so great, it would take weeks to get help from Starfleet. If the dilithium crystals were now flawed due to the radiation burst, it could take years to get back to the Federation under impulse power alone. They were on the edge of nowhere, and clearly had to fend for themselves.

Meanwhile the Klingons circled around them, picking up debris and never letting them slip out of sensor range within the shadow of the Badlands. Spock had to admire Commander Darok's subtle intimidation ploy. His maneuvers continually pushed the Enterprise right to the edge of a fight.

Spock had been allowed to send additional probes into the Badlands to obtain scientific data. Since the captain had informed the Klingons that the Enterprise was here to study the plasma storms, it made sense to continue with their scientific research.

They were well into their third day of yellow alert when Sulu announced, "I've got another one!"

Spock switched from his scans of the Badlands to access the sensor array. There was a piece of debris that scanned positively for theta-matrix compositing particles, an essential component of warp drive systems.

"Tracking," Mister Chekov reported.

Chekov had returned to his duty station two days ago. Most of the injured crew members were also now back on duty, including Dr. McCoy. He had already been on the bridge once this morning, complaining about something. Spock had been too involved in an a.n.a.lysis of the plasma gases to listen.

"Confirmed, Captain," Spock said, examining Sulu's findings. "It is part of the converter a.s.sembly, consisting of trilanium, approximately 1.2 kilograms in weight."

"The biggest we've found," Kirk said thoughtfully.

"Indeed, it is quite sizable," Spock agreed.

"Location of the Klingon battlecruiser," Kirk requested.

Chekov checked the helm. "Two hundred thousand kilometers off our stern, sir."

"Close ..." Kirk said, disappointed. 'Too close."

"Perhaps we could create a diversion," Sulu suggested. "Vent some plasma from our nacelles."

"They know we're working on our warp drive,"

Chekov agreed. "It would make sense to vent the systems."

Spock detected an eagerness from the crew to do somethinganythingto break the monotony and stress. "Captain, the risk may be too high," he cautioned. "None of the other debris beamed on board has revealed any information relevant to our current mission."

"It could tell us something," Chekov insisted, sounding frustrated. "Especially if they had an engine overload."

All eyes turned to Captain Kirk. Spock could tell by the way he shifted in his seat that Kirk, too, was eager to do something. But Kirk was too canny to fall into that trap.

"Hold position," he ordered. "Keep us between the Klingon battlecruiser and the debris. We'll wait until they move off."

Barely suppressed sighs greeted his order. But the crew obediently settled back to their duties.

"Engineer Scott to Captain Kirk."

Kirk shifted his hand to press the b.u.t.ton to respond. "What is it, Scotty?"

The chief had been ensconced in engineering for the past day. The only time Spock had seen nun was when he had a.s.sisted in calibrating the dilithium crystal scanner to ensure that the entire crystalline structure had been a.n.a.lyzed. Dilithium was a notoriously difficult substance to work with.

"Th' dilithium is sound, sir," Scott jubilantly reported. "I've realigned the crystals in the articulation frame, and the new EPS taps are containin' the stream.

We can power up the warp engines in the next hour or so."

There were quiet exclamations of relief among the officers, as Kirk said, "Good work, Scotty. Let me know as soon as warp drive is back on-line."

Spock returned to his work. Their situation would obviously change soon, so he needed to obtain as much data on the Badlands as he could within that time frame.

Kirk was tired of waiting, but he contained his impatience as warp drive was slowly powered up. It had been a game of nerves for the past few days. The Klingons had kept creeping closer than he was comfortable with, and the Enterprise had to keep constantly running away while trying to act like it wasn't.

Kirk had become more and more convinced that the Klingons were waiting for the smuggler to arrive. It was not like Klingons to lurk. They were in-your-face types, quick to attack and depart. If the situation was bothering his crew, the Klingons must be ready to explode.

Most revealing was when Commander Darok had hailed them yesterday, irritably demanding to know whether they had encountered any other vessels in the area. Kirk had blandly admitted to seeing several vessels in the area, but he couldn't get Darok to specify what type of ship he was looking for. Kirk didn't want to reveal anything else while they were still without warp drive. They were too vulnerable to get in an entanglement with the Klingons.

But now ... Kirk knew he needed to resolve the situation. He had spent the past two evenings with Commander Teral, talking about a wide range of subjects, people and places, trying to figure her out. Yet Kirk was still not sure if she was telling the truth. She had certainly traveled extensively both inside Federation and Romulan territories as well as in the outlying regions. He found himself almost envying her freedom. She admitted she could have retired to a small planet somewhere by now, but she said she enjoyed roaming about.

One thing Kirk knew for certainhe couldn't trust his own judgment when it came to the Romulan commander. And Teral had also thoroughly captivated McCoy, who went to "check on her" soon after he was able to get out of bed. McCoy had been there when Kirk had arrived the night beforethe doctor had almost invited himself to stay for dinner. Kirk had observed that Spock at least had not spoken to Teral since he had confronted her over the access codes.

Since Kirk couldn't get the proof from Teral, he decided it was time to try another route. He would provoke the Klingons, to find out if they were in the Badlands to meet th e Barataria.

When Scotty confirmed that warp drive was on-line and that they could engage it, Kirk was ready. He checked their location and was pleased to see they were close to the edge of the sensor shadow, where they could go to warp.

"Does the battlecruiser have weapons systems on liner?" Kirk asked Spock.

"Affirmative, sir. However, their targeting system is currently on standby."

"If we drop shields, how long before they could lock on and fire?"

"Approximately thirty seconds," Spock replied. "a.s.suming Commander Darek decides to attack the moment our shields are down."

"I don't think the Klingons are prepared to do that." Kirk stood up and moved forward to the helm. "Sulu, drop shields and leave them down until my order. Mister Spock, scan the battlecruiser and let me know when they lock on weapons."

Chekov seemed confused. "Shouldn't we dispel some plasma as a distraction, sir?"

"No," Kirk told him.

Sulu turned to look up at him. "But sir, at this range the Klingons will know we've dropped our shields. They'll be able to scan us."

"That's what I'm counting on." Kirk gazed speculatively at the battlecruiser on the viewscreen. "I want them to scan us. Let them see we've got a Romulan on board." He glanced around as the bridge crew realized what he intended to do. To bring the weapons systems on line, he now ordered, "Red alert."

"Red alert," Uhura announced to the ship as the red light began flashing. "All decks report status. Red alert." After a moment, she reported, "All decks report ready, sir."

"Chekov, move away so they can see that piece of wreckage we've been hiding.

"Acknowledged, sir."

"Mister Sulu, after you drop shields, beam the wreckage over and take it to the science lab." It would serve as an excuse for their lowering the shields.

"We are clear of the debris, sir," Chekov reported.

"Drop shields," Kirk ordered.

"Dropping shields," Sulu reported. His hands moved across the console.

Kirk kept an eye on Spock, who was gazing into his scanner.

Spock didn't look up as he reported, "The Tr'loth is scanning us, Captain."

"Hold position," Kirk said calmly. "Beam aboard the debris."

"Aye, sir," Sulu acknowledged.

Most of the officers on the bridge shifted, instinctively uneasy with the idea that the Klingons were scanning the ship.

'Twenty-five seconds," Sulu reported.

Kirk knew the Klingons had been working with the Romulans for many years now. They probably had a good understanding of each other's physiology and lifesigns. It wouldn't take the Klingons long to find the Romulan in their midst.

'Thirty seconds," Sulu said.

"Their weapons are locking on, sir," Spock announced, after a few moments.

"Raise shields," Kirk ordered.

"Shields raised," Sulu replied, so fast that the sequence must have already been keyed in.

"Evasive maneuvers," Kirk said. "Heading four-five-zero mark forty."

The battlecruiser shifted out of view on the screen as the Enterprise headed for the edge of the sensor shadow. Kirk checked the readout on his arm console. The Klingons weren't firing, but they were in pursuit.

"Sir, Commander Darok is hailing you," Uhura said.

Right on cue, Kirk thought. "On screen."

The Klingon glowered down at him, his face filling the screen. "Kirk! You have Romulans on board your ship!"

Kirk affected an innocent smile. "Actually, only one Romulan. Commander Teral of the Barataria."

"Release the commander immediately," Darok demanded.

"What is your interest in Commander Teral?" Kirk asked.

Darok narrowed his eyes. "I will speak with the commander now."

An interesting suggestion, and one Kirk was prepared for. Teral might take the opportunity to exchange recognition signals, or perhaps convey a message in code. It was a calculated risk, but he was willing to take it to resolve the situation. Darok was not a subtle person, so surely he would give away his intentions.

Kirk pressed the comm to the captain's quarters. "Commander Teral, the Klingon Commander Darok would like to speak with you."

After a moment, Teral replied, "I have nothing to say to any Klingon commander, Captain Kirk."

Very smart, Kirk thought, exactly what she would say if she was innocent of smuggling plasma-beam data from the Romulans to the Klingons. But maybe she was innocent....

He signaled Uhura to put the Darok back on the screen. "Commander Teral doesn't want to speak to you, Commander."

"You lie!" Darok blurted out. Spittle caught on his lower lip, making it shine. His brows stuck out wildly as he glared at Kirk.

Kirk was disgusted by the display. He leaned back, silently gazing at the commander.

"Release her now!" Darok insisted. "Or you will regret it...."

Kirk went very still. "How did you know Commander Teral was a woman?"

Darok was momentarily caught off guard. "You said"

"No, I didn't mention it"

Darok glanced away briefly. "The scans show a female Romulan."

Kirk suppressed his grin of victory. Darok had said"You have Romulans on board." If they couldn't tell there was only one Romulan, then they certainly hadn't been able to pinpoint gender.

Now Kirk was certain that Teral was lying. She must have the specs on the plasma-beam weapon.

The Klingon commander was growing purple with rage, thinking Kirk had possession of the information. Darok slammed his fist against something off screen. "Release that ship now!"

'1 have no intention of doing that," Kirk said steadily.

"You will suffer the consequences." Darok seemed pleased at the prospect as he cut transmission.

"Full impulse power," Kirk ordered. "Scotty, we're going to need warp power."

"Aye, Captain!" Scott called from the engine room.